缥

縹

piāo / piǎo

adjective #70,160

Meanings

1 (in 缥缈) dim and indistinct; misty

Characters

缥

piāo

(in 缥缈) misty; indistinct

Examples

山雾中的亭子显得虚无缥缈。

Shānwù zhōng de tíngzi xiǎnde xūwú piāomiǎo.

The pavilion looked dim and unreal in the mountain mist.

远处传来隐约缥缈的乐声。

Yuǎnchù chuánlái yǐnyuē piāomiǎo de yuèshēng.

Faint music drifted from afar, hazy and indistinct.

Tips

usage

Read 缥 in 缥缈 (also written 缥渺) — dim, faint, seemingly there and not there. A separate reading piǎo means 'light blue (silk)'.

Components

radical

纟 sī

silk thread

Left 纟 is the silk radical 糸 in left-side form. The character originally named a pale silk; in 缥缈 it borrows that wispy, gauzy quality for 'faint and indistinct'.

phonetic

票 piào

ticket; phonetic

Right 票 supplies the sound (piào drifting to piāo). The same phonetic anchors 飘 (to float) and 漂 (to drift).

Stroke Order

缥 piāo

缥